Kansas Legislature Approves Bill to Remove Statute of Limitations for Child Sex Abuse
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas lawmakers have given final approval to a bill that would make it easier to pursue criminal charges or file lawsuits over childhood sexual abuse, even if the abuse is reported many years after it occurred. The House approved the measure unanimously, 120-0. The Senate also approved it unanimously last week. The bill is now headed to Governor Laura Kelly. The bill would eliminate time limits on prosecution for any of a dozen violent sexual offenses against children. The new law would also extend the deadline for filing a lawsuit seeking monetary damages to when abuse survivors turn 31 or three years after the abuser is convicted of a sexually violent crime against a child. Currently, such a lawsuit may only be files for up to three years after the victim turns 18.
==========
Kansas House Rejects State-Run Presidential Primaries
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) — Kansas House lawmakers have rejected a plan to create state-run presidential primaries next year. Unless lawmakers hold last-minute negotiations, the idea is dead for this year. The bill would have allowed the Republican and Democratic parties to use the state voting system to nominate candidates. It would have replaced party-run caucuses. The state-run elections would have cost about $5 million. Some lawmakers say it’s not worth the cost. Republican Representative Brenda Landwehr says that’s part of the reason the state ditched the primaries years ago. “Better to spend that money elsewhere,” Landwehr said. “If the parties want to organize them, they can and have their vote.” Supporters of holding primaries argue that a state-run election would be more convenient for many voters and would increase voter turnout.
==========
Transgender Bathroom Bill Approved in Kansas; Veto Expected
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas bill to impose some of the nation's broadest bathroom restrictions and ban transgender people from changing the name or gender on their driver's licenses cleared the Legislature by margins Tuesday that suggest backers could override the Democratic governor's expected veto.
Kansas Senate voted 28-12 with one vote more than a two-thirds majority needed to overturn any veto, giving final passage to an earlier House-passed version and sending it to Gov. Laura Kelly. Both chambers have Republican supermajorities.
The measure deals with bathrooms, locker rooms and other facilities, and defines “sex” as “either male or female, at birth,” a move LGBTQ+-rights advocates said would legally erase transgender people and deny recognition to non-binary, gender fluid and gender non-conforming people.
The final vote came less than two hours after Arkansas lawmakers sent Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders a bathroom bill after scaling it back following complaints it would have criminalized transgender people for simply using a public restroom. The Arkansas bill would allow transgender people to be charged with a misdemeanor for using bathrooms or changing rooms associated with their identities if cisgendered minors are present, but only if they enter it “for the purpose of arousing or gratifying a sexual desire.”
Both state's measures are among several hundred aimed at rolling back LGBTQ rights pursued by Republicans this year across the United States. The wave of legislation has angered and vexed LGBTQ-rights activists, trangender people and parents of transgender children.
“I am what they are scared of,” Ian Benalcazar, a 13-year-old northeastern Kansas transgender boy said during a recent LGBTQ-rights rally outside the Statehouse. “I am a human being and I deserve to be treated as such, and I deserve to be happy.”
Arkansas is among seven states that have banned transgender students from using school bathrooms and locker rooms associated with their gender identities, its law taking effect this summer. However, the Kansas measure also covers prisons, jails, rape crisis centers, domestic violence shelters and other spaces “where biology, safety or privacy” prompt separate facilities for men and women.
The Kansas bill defines male and female based on a person’s physical anatomy at birth.
The measure now headed to Kelly would declare that legally, “sex” means “biological” sex, “either male or female, at birth.” And it adds, “important governmental objectives of protecting the health, safety and privacy” justify separate spaces for men and women like bathrooms and locker rooms.
“This will protect women’s spaces currently reserved for women and and men’s spaces,” said House Health Committee Chair Brenda Landwehr, a Wichita Republican who voted for the bill.
Supporters framed their measure as a proposed “Women's Bill of Rights,” similar to measures introduced in Congress and at least five other states. It was based on language circulated by several national anti-trans groups.
Senate President Ty Masterson, a Wichita-area Republican, said lawmakers are trying to protect families amid what people see as a small but growing number of cases of transgender girls or women using facilities with cisgendered girls or women.
“People are starting to pay attention,” Masterson said.
Kansas House members included provisions requiring accommodations for some intersex people born with chromosomes, genitalia, or reproductive organs not associated with typical definitions for males or females.
The House vote last month was 83-41, one vote shy of the two-thirds majority necessary to override any veto, but one conservative Republican likely to support the bill was absent.
Kelly vetoed a proposed ban on transgender athletes in girls' and women's sports this year for the third straight year. Republican lawmakers in Kansas also are pursuing a bill aimed at stopping gender-affirming care for minors, something at least 11 states have done.
The governor promised LGBTQ youth lobbying lawmakers last week that she would “protect your rights” and "veto any bill that aims to harm or discriminate against you.”
In Arkansas, lawmakers initially considered a version of their bill that would have gone further than a 2016 North Carolina bathroom law, through the North Carolina law didn't have criminal penalties. The Arkansas measure allows someone to be charged with misdemeanor sexual indecency with a child.
The Republican-dominated state Senate approved the revised bill on a 29-4 vote without debate. The House approved it last week without any “no” votes.
Doctors say reproductive anatomy at birth doesn’t always align with strict definitions of sex and that binary views of sexual identity can miss biological nuances.
Carson Rapp, a Wichita, Kansas-area 15-year-old who identifies as bigender or embracing “both more masculine and more feminine traits," said expressing one's gender identity doesn't harm others.
“Why stop people from doing it if they’re just being themselves and having fun and expressing themselves?” Carson said during an LGBTQ-youth lobbying day.
LGBTQ-rights advocates say having a driver’s license or birth certificate confirm a transgender person’s identity is important by itself but also can prevent daily hassles or harassment. The bill’s language would prevent transgender people from changing both driver's licenses and birth certificates, but Kansas is under a 2019 federal court order to allow birth certificate changes.
Carson's father, Will Rapp, the Kansas managing director for GLSEN, a group advocating for LGBTQ youth, said it's discouraging to see what he called “pretty awful” legislation.
“I would like to think that if they were to get to know these young people, that would change their hearts, and we will always have hope for that,” he said.
==========
'Born Alive' Abortion Bill Passes, Heads to Governor
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Doctors accused of not providing enough care to infants born during abortion procedures in Kansas could face lawsuits and criminal charges under a bill that won final passage Tuesday in the state's Republican-controlled Legislature.
The legislation faces an uncertain fate in a legal and political climate that's made Kansas an outlier on abortion policy among states with GOP-led legislatures.
The Kansas House voted 86-36 to approve a proposed “born-alive infants protection” law similar to a proposed law that Montana voters rejected in November. The Senate approved the measure last week and it goes next to Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly, who vetoed such a bill in 2019.
The Senate voted 31-9 for the bill last week, meaning it passed both chambers with more than the two-thirds majorities necessary to override a potential veto from Kelly.
“We can have differing views on abortion and still agree on the need for this legislation as a humanitarian issue,” the Kansas House's three top Republicans said in a joint statement.
Even if abortion opponents succeed in overriding any veto, the measure could still be challenged in court and not enforced. Lawsuits have prevented Kansas from enforcing a 2015 ban on a common second-trimester abortion procedure and a 2011 law imposing extra health and safety rules for abortion providers.
Kansas abortion opponents haven’t pushed to ban abortion outright despite the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in June 2022 that the U.S. Constitution allows it. The Kansas Supreme Court ruled in 2019 that access to abortion is a “fundamental” right under the state constitution, and in August 2022, voters decisively rejected a proposed change to strip away protections for abortion rights.
The “born alive” measure is premised on a claim that abortion providers leave newborns to die if they're born during an abortion procedure. Critics of the bill said the state would be intervening in difficult medical and ethical decisions between doctors and parents. They also said parents could be forced to accept futile and expensive care.
“If the infant is born alive and only has minutes to live, the mother, the father, the family, have the right to ask for palliative care and embrace the infant until it is no longer breathing,” said state Rep. Susan Ruiz, a Kansas City-area Democrat.
The measure applies not only to “botched” or “unsuccessful” abortions but also to cases in which doctors induce labor to deliver a fetus that won’t survive outside the womb. That can occur because of a severe medical issue, with the expectation that the newborn will die within minutes or even seconds.
The Kansas measure is similar to laws in 18 other states requiring infants born during labor and delivery abortions to go to a hospital and imposing criminal penalties for doctors who don’t provide the same care "a reasonably diligent and conscientious” provider would with other live births.
In Kansas, failing to provide reasonable care for such a newborn would be a felony, punishable by a year’s probation for a first-time offender. Also, the newborn's parents and the parents or guardians of minors seeking abortions could sue providers.
Like most states, Kansas doesn’t collect data on births during induced abortion procedures. The bill would require annual reports to the state.
Anti-abortion groups argue that there are likely hundreds of live births during abortion procedures each year in the U.S. The argument is based on extrapolating data from the handful of states requiring reports of such live births, as well as from data from most Canadian provinces.
“One important aspect of the bill is that it would require that reporting on abortion survivors,” said Kelsey Pritchard, spokesperson for the national anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America.
Abortion rights supporters argue that the Kansas measure and laws in other states are designed to paint a misleading picture of abortion care.
In Kansas, no abortions after the 21st week have been reported since at least 2016, and, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, less than 1% of the more than 600,000 abortions a year occur after the 21st week of pregnancy. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists says almost no fetuses are viable before the 23rd week of pregnancy.
Critics of the measure also argue that existing laws against homicide are sufficient to deal with what they see as a rare issue. They also argue that passing the measure defies the statewide vote in August affirming abortion rights.
“This bill is absolutely unecessary,” Democratic state Sen. Pat Pettey, of Kansas City, said during a debate last week. “This bill will traumatize mothers who desperately want to be mothers, who already are dealing with the heart-breaking moments of loss imaginable.”
==========
Wind Turbine Lighting Restrictions Bill Heads to Governor
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Flashing red lights atop wind turbines would be curtailed to improve nighttime views under a bill that has been sent to the governor.
If signed by Democratic Governor Laura Kelly, it would require installation of light-mitigating technology on new and existing wind farms, The Topeka Capital-Journal reports.
The aircraft detection lighting system technology would turn off the lights except for when aircraft are near. Aircraft aren’t near a wind farm about 97% of the time the lights are blinking, said Rep. Lisa Moser, R-Wheaton.
“This bill came about because there are thousands of Kansans who see red blinking lights every three seconds, 24 hours a day,” Moser said, “and this is legislation that will mitigate that.”
Kansas has about about 4,000 turbines now with plans to add 6,000 more, Moser said.
It could take years for the new systems to be installed, with new developments required to comply first.
State Senator Mike Thompson, R-Shawnee, said a radar system costs about $1.5 million, and one should be enough for most developments. That’s less than the approximate $5 million cost to build a single turbine, he said.
==========
Parental Rights Bill Passes Kansas Senate
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) — Kansas lawmakers have advanced a bill that allows parents to remove their child from any classroom lesson or activity the parents view as inappropriate. The Kansas Senate voted 23-17 to pass the bill, which is a weaker version of the “Parents’ Bill of Rights” measure the governor vetoed last year. That bill would have allowed parents to challenge content in a course and stop it from being taught altogether rather than simply removing their own child from the class. Supporters say this year’s version is not a bill of rights, but it outlines in state law that parents have a right to direct the education of their children. Opponents say parents can already ask for their child to be pulled from an assignment they disagree with. Democratic Senator Dinah Sykes says the proposed law would put more pressure on overworked teachers and staff. “It's an unnecessary burden on our teachers, administrators,” Sykes said. “All of our education advocates oppose mandates for bureaucratic tasks that take time and effort from the classroom.” The bill now heads to a conference committee, where members of both chambers will work out differences in their versions of the measure.
==========
Former Kansas Researcher Appeals Remaining Conviction
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A former researcher, who was accused of hiding work he did in China while employed at the University of Kansas, has asked a federal judge to reverse a conviction for making a false statement on an employee form.
Feng “Franklin” Tao was convicted in April 2022 of three counts of wire fraud and one count of making a false statement. U.S. District Court Judge Julie Robinson threw out the wire fraud convictions in September, but let the false statement conviction stand.
Tao was sentenced to time served.
In a motion filed Monday, Tao's attorneys argued his remaining conviction also should be reversed, or go to trial again.
Tao was accused of not properly filling out an institutional responsibilities form for the University of Kansas, by not disclosing that he was traveling to China to work on setting up a laboratory and recruit staff for Fuzhou University.
Federal prosecutors argued that Tao's activities defrauded the university, as well as the U.S. Department of Energy and National Science Foundation, which had awarded Tao grants for research projects at the school.
In the motion for a reversal, Tao's attorneys said the university did not share the form with the two federal agencies, meaning it did not impact any decisions on research projects. They also argued that Tao's alleged omissions on the form did not violate federal law concerning making false statements.
The motion said the case against Tao was a “breathtaking instance of prosecutorial overreach” that sought to make a human resources issue at the university into a federal crime.
The U.S. Attorney's Office in Washington did not immediately return a request for comment.
The case against Tao was part of the U.S. Justice Department’s China Initiative, which started in 2018 to thwart what the agency said was the transfer of original ideas and intellectual property from U.S. universities to the Chinese government. The department ended the program amid public criticism and several failed prosecutions.
==========
ACA Ruling Could Affect Maternity Care and HIV Prevention
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) — Health care policy experts say a federal court ruling could impact Kansans’ access to some preventative health services during pregnancy. Some Kansas doctors also worry that the measure would hinder efforts to prevent of HIV infection. A federal judge in Texas has ruled that private insurers no longer have to provide free screenings for certain pregnancy complications. One of those complications is preeclampsia. It’s one of the leading causes of maternal deaths and it disproportionately affects Black women. The bill would also allow insurance companies to charge patients for some preventative services that were previously free. That includes an HIV-prevention drug called PrEP, which can cost as much as $2,000 per month. Private insurers cover more than 70% of Kansans and doctors worry that the high retail price will make the medication unaffordable for many Kansans. Some people in Kansas could also soon have to pay more for certain preventative health care services including some cancer screenings. The American Cancer Society says that could make mammograms, colonoscopies and lung cancer screenings more expensive for some Kansans. An estimated 17,000 Kansans will get a new cancer diagnosis this year. The Biden administration is expected to appeal the Texas ruling.
==========
Kobach Backing Bill to Outlaw Land Ownership by Foreign Adversaries
TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR) — Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach is urging state lawmakers to make it illegal for foreign “adversaries” to own land in Kansas. The bill would prohibit persons or corporations controlled by foreign countries deemed hostile to the United States from owning land in Kansas. Countries targeted by the bill include Iran, Russia, and China. Kobach says China’s efforts to acquire more U.S. farmland over the last decade constitute an especially serious threat to the nation’s security and its food supply. While China has recently become more aggressive in its land purchases, it still controls less than one percent of all foreign-owned land in the U.S. Foreign countries now own or lease about 40 million acres of U.S. land, including 1.2 million acres in Kansas. All but a fraction of that acreage is controlled by Canada and by European countries. Opponents of the Kansas bill say, foreign land ownership is an issue for the federal government, not state lawmakers.
==========
Pear Tree Removal Program Ratchets up in Northeast Kansas
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KNS) — A program to replace invasive ornamental pear trees with native trees is expanding in northeast Kansas. If you’re noticing lots of trees covered in white flowers this spring, most of them are highly invasive ornamental pears. Arborists say the invasive trees are ruining Kansas and Missouri woodlands and prairies and contributing to declining bird and insect numbers. In April and May, homeowners in the Topeka and Kansas City areas who kill ornamental pear trees can get professional help picking out a free replacement tree. The group Deep Roots KC, is a non-profit collective working to increase native plant landscapes. Deep Roots is giving free native trees to homeowners who kill the invasive pear trees. The group says the native trees will help bees, birds and butterflies. Deep Roots KC says it plans to expand the program west to other parts of Kansas in coming years. Homeowners can visit the Deep Roots website to participate
==========
Wabaunsee County Woman Killed in UTV Crash
McFARLAND, Kan. (WIBW) – A woman was killed Sunday night in an UTV crash in Wabaunsee County about a mile southwest of McFarland. 23-year-old Ashley M. Seidl of Alma died in the crash just after 6:00 Sunday evening. The Kansas Highway Patrol says a 2021 Polaris utility terrain vehicle failed to negotiate a curve before it overturned ejecting the passenger. The patrol said Seidl was not wearing a seat belt. WIBW reports that 26-year-old Lester R. Johnson of Alma was the driver of the UTV. Johnson was transported to Stormont Vail Hospital in Topeka with minor injuries. McFarland is 35 miles west of Topeka.
==========
Kansas Law Enforcement Conducting Campaign Against Distracted Driving
TOPEKA (KSNT) – Starting this week, Kansas law enforcement agencies will be taking additional steps to combat distracted driving. The Kansas Highway Patrol views distracted driving as anything that takes drivers attention away from the roadways. Distractions include things like eating and drinking while driving as well as talking or texting on your phone. The highway patrol says looking at a text message on your phone can take your eyes away from the road for five seconds and five seconds at highway speed covers the length of a football field. KSNT reports that the KHP will have additional enforcement across the state in support of Distracted Driving Awareness Month.
==========
Chiefs' Travis Kelce to Host Music Festival in Kansas City Area
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Travis Kelce is living his best life: On the heels of winning the Super Bowl and hosting “Saturday Night Live,” the Kansas City Chiefs superstar tight end will cap his successful string with a music festival this month.
The two-time Super Bowl winner announced Tuesday that he’ll host his first-ever festival called “Kelce Jam” during NFL Draft weekend. The inaugural event will be held April 28 at the Azura Amphitheater in Bonner Springs, Kansas — a metropolitan area of Kansas City.
The event will feature performances by Machine Gun Kelly, Rick Ross, DJ duo Loud Luxury and Kansas City rap legend Tech N9ne.
“With the draft coming to KC, I think it’s perfect timing for me to throw the biggest music festival that’s ever come here,” said Kelce, who believes the festival could lure around 15,000 attendees. “We’ll have some unreal stage productions, Kansas City’s best food, tons of attractions and football-related games. This will be a whole lot of fun.”
Kelce said he’s taking advantage of his surging popularity after the Chiefs beat the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl 57 in February. Last month, he hosted “Saturday Night Live” and he co-hosts a flourishing podcast with his brother, Jason Kelce, who plays for the Eagles.
In this moment, Kelce is enjoying “every bit of it” and feels ecstatic about his upcoming music festival.
“Every door that’s been opened because of winning the Super Bowl, I’ve been running through them,” he said. “It’s not going to stop anytime soon – especially with Kelce Jam. I think this will be the nail-in-the-coffin for the 2022 season.”
Kelce said he wanted to bring some of his favorite artists including Machine Gun Kelly – who is an Ohio native like himself. He felt inspired to host his own music festival after he attended four-time Super Bowl champion Rob Gronkowski’s Gronk Beach during the NFL Draft in Las Vegas last year.
“I took note from what Gronk did last year,” he said. “I want to throw a big party knowing that the draft is coming to Kansas City. It’s a special event for the city to host. … I’m going to need Kansas City to come out and be electric with me.”
==========
Kansas State Basketball Coach Tang Wins Naismith Award
MANHATTAN, Kan. (WIBW) - Kansas State University’s Men’s Basketball Head Coach Jerome Tang has been named the Naismith Coach of the Year. Tang was officially named winner of the Werner Ladder Naismith Men’s College Coach of the Year Sunday as the men’s NCAA Final Four tournament continued in Houston, Texas. Tang was chosen from a field of finalists that included Purdue’s Matt Painter, Houston’s Kelvin Sampson and Marquette’s Shaka Smart. WIBW TV reports that Tang becomes the first K-State head coach to earn the title. He joins three coaches from the University of Kansas who have won the award: Larry Brown in 1988, Roy Williams in 1997 and Bill Self in 2012. Tang was chosen as the 25th head men’s basketball coach at Kansas State in March 2022. He previously served as assistant head coach at Baylor’s from 2003 to 2022.
==========
KU Jayhawks Women’s Team Beats Columbia to Win WNIT Title
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KPR)- The Kansas Jayhawks women's basketball team won the Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT) championship title Saturday with a 65-59 win over Columbia. With an official crowd of 11,707 fans in Allen Fieldhouse, the Jayhawks used their home court advantage to power them to victory. KU used an 18-3 run to close out the third quarter to create breathing room and eventually earn the win over the Lions. Taiyanna Jackson collected her fifth double-double of the WNIT and 23rd of the season with 17 points and a career-high tying 21 rebounds. Zakiyah Franklin led Kansas with 19 points with a perfect 9-of-9 shooting from the charity stripe, adding a block and two steals to her night. Chandler Prater was one point shy of a double-double with nine points, 11 rebounds and four steals in an impressive defensive effort. The win not only secured KU’s first WNIT championship title, but also gave Kansas 25 wins on the season as the Jayhawks' final record clocked in at 25-12.
==========
Royals Win First Game of Season with New Manager
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KNS) — With their 9-5 win over the Toronto Blue Jays Monday night, the Kansas City Royals not only picked up their first win of the season, it was their first under their new manager. Matt Quatraro is in his first year as a big league manager and the Royals players after the game made sure he wouldn’t forget his first win. “They dumped some champagne on me and sprayed it in my face first. Turned out the lights and that was about it,” Quatraro said. The Royals got a lead for the first time this season with three runs in the first and added four more runs in the fourth. That was enough for starting pitcher Brady Singer to be credited with a win in his first start of the year.
==========
This summary of area news is curated by KPR news staffers, including J. Schafer, Laura Lorson, Tom Parkinson and Kaye McIntyre. Our headlines are generally posted by 10 am weekdays and updated throughout the day. These ad-free headlines are made possible by KPR members. Become one today. And follow KPR News on Twitter.